In praise of Sara Bareilles' Battle of the Sexes song

She dared to ask it, and she dared it to be true.

So goes the story about Billie Jean King, and so goes also the song Sara Bareilles penned after meeting King and viewing Battle of the Sexes, the dramedy-biopic starring Emma Stone that has netted its star and co-lead Steve Carrell, portraying piggish detractor-in-chief Bobby Riggs, a mixed-doubles set of Golden Globes nominations.

"It was a little bit of a cosmic nod," Bareilles told *The Hollywood Reporter* about how she came to encounter King and the film's content as one who knew of this cultural icon but knew nothing about the 1973 Battle of the Sexes showdown itself. Cue her Tony-nominated musical-writing partner, Jessie Nelson, who introduced her to a pair of next-door neighbors – directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris of Little Miss Sunshine fame, who helmed Battle and were shopping for a marquee original song.

Suffice it to say, the rest is 'herstory.' And the song garnered a certain tennis/feminist/gay rights icon's endorsement.

Talk about singing for an audience of one.

Follow Jon on Twitter @jonscott9.

Friday, December 29: Novak Djokovic begins his comeback at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi against either Roberto Bautista Agut or Andrey Rublev.

Not before 10:00 a.m. ET LIVE on Tennis Channel Plus. GET PLUS NOW at tnns.ch/TCPlus

Saturday, December 30: Roger Federer looks to continue his remarkable resurgence at the Hopman Cup in Perth in singles and mixed doubles competition.

4:30 a.m ET LIVE on Tennis Channel Plus. GET PLUS NOW at tnns.ch/TCPlus

Saturday, December 30: Serena Williams returns at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, in her first match since the birth of her first child, against the 2017 French Open champion, Jelena Ostapenko.

8:00 a.m ET LIVE on Tennis Channel. Additional airings at 2:00 p.m., 8:00 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. ET.